Get the scoop from the 2015 Phillies Ballgirls as they share their experiences

Happy Holidays from the Phillies Ballgirls!

Whether you celebrate Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanza, Festivus, or something else altogether, the holidays are a wonderful time to spend time with family and to rekindle old traditions.For me those traditions involve squeezing into a pew with my big, goofy family for a Christmas Eve candlelight service, then staying up until the wee hours of the morning on Christmas Eve, watching It’s a Wonderful Life and wrapping Christmas presents. For Lauren, they entail a trip to Colorado and the Hanukkah fairy, and for Gina, they involve the most incredible sounding dinner ever! Wherever the holidays take you, all of the ballgirls would like to wish you health, happiness, and hope for an amazing 2009!

Read more about the ballgirls holiday traditions and wishes below!

LaurenI definitely had a unique holiday tradition that not a lot of other people had. Since I celebrate Hanukkah, I always looked forward to getting gifts from the Hanukkah Fairy! He came each night of Hanukkah during dinner, and my brother and I never noticed! My family lit the candles, sang the prayers, and ate a home-cooked dinner together each of the eight nights of Hanukkah. Before dinner, our gifts for the night were nowhere to be found, but after dinner, we’d rush into the living room and on the fireplace would be several wrapped presents, and tiny knickknacks and candy in our “Hanukkah stockings” (like Christmas stockings, except they were blue with a white star of David on them!). He got me some pretty nice gifts. I got a lot of cool art supplies, some good candy, and one year, a dollhouse that my Dad and I built together.

Since Hanukkah rarely falls on the same date as Christmas, my family would travel every year during the holidays and go skiing. On Christmas Eve, we usually end up at one of our favorite restaurants in a town in Colorado, and it feels like any other night!

My wish for the New Year is that everyone I love stays happy and healthy, although it would be nice to see the Phillies win another World Championship!

SamEvery Christmas Eve my family and I go out to dinner and then come home and change into our PJs. After everyone is settled my mom and dad let my brother and I pick one present to open. (My brother always opens socks.)

On Christmas morning, my mom turns on all the Christmas lights and calls us down for breakfast and presents! We open our presents under the tree and then the stockings are always last. My brother and I then have to open up the presents that Santa had left my dogs. (I still don’t understand why Santa wraps the presents he gives to our dogs). After all the presents have been opened we just hang around the house all day and then get ready for dinner with the rest of my family.

As you can see Christmas is a huge ordeal full of tradition in my family and I am grateful that each year my parents make sure my brother and I have the best Christmas possible. I understand that not many people are as fortunate so each Christmas I always wish that everyone has at least one present to open on Christmas morning, and this year I will also be wishing for another World Series Championship!

TeresaThe holiday season is my favorite because it means that I get to be reunited with my family and friends. From the Jackson 5 Christmas album to White Christmas, our family has its holiday traditions and favorites. My mom usually decorates the house with the same decorations every year. She takes it VERY seriously; my favorite is her 12 Days of Christmas clock… and yes, every hour, on the hour, it sings a different Christmas song. Hurley (my dog) still hasn’t figured out what that noise is! On Christmas Eve, we gather around the tree and wait for Mom to throw us a different present from each other. Then, the gag gifts come… I get picked on the most when it comes to those. I’ve gotten my fair share of whoopee cushions and other unmentionables!

On Christmas Day I’m usually the one to wake everyone up at an ungodly hour to open our presents from Santa! Then we head to mass, watch some football, and finish off with a great Christmas dinner complete with plum pudding and Christmas crackers (Irish traditional favorites). Then Dad usually puts on some Irish Christmas music to round it out, to which we sing along. I can’t wait to visit everyone at home to wish them all a Happy Christmas! To all Phils phans, enjoy your holiday season and have a very happy new year!

DebbieMy Christmas is jam packed with family parties, from the 20th through the 26th. My husband’s mother’s side of the family party is on the 20th, then my Dad’s family on the 24th, my Mom’s family on the 25th, then my husbands father’s side of the family on the 26th!!! And extra special party added this year on the 27th will be the First Annual Ballgirl Christmas party…which I am very excited to host…I mean, after all we’ve been through, I couldn’t see me not celebrating the holiday’s with them all, they’re practically family!!! Can’t wait.My one wish for this year would have to be…..for this economy to straighten up, for us to get back on our feet, for the people who lost jobs-to find something even better, for my family’s health, wealth, and happiness, and I wouldn’t be representing the Phillies if I didn’t wish for another “Perfect Season.” Happy Holiday’s Phillies Phans, may this coming year bring you nothing but the best

LauraAfter experiencing this entire past season and the World Series championship I can only wish for another World Series victory in Philly for the upcoming baseball season. We have waited so long for this to happen! I have been filled with so many memories from this year that I would love to experience it all over again!

KatieI LOVE Christmas time! My family has this Christmas tradition every year. On Christmas Eve, we eat dinner as a family then go to church. When we come back from church, my brothers and sister open gifts that we give each other. We do a pollyanna every year and have so much fun buying each other gifts. On Christmas day, we all used to sit at the top of the stairs until my parents got the video camera ready. It was so hard waiting for them to get ready for us to come down! When we got downstairs we had to open our gifts one by one so that we can see what everyone got. After we open our presents, I would help my mom make our dinner. The whole day is so special and I am happy that we can still have our family traditions.

My Christmas Wish: I wish for another World Series title next season :)

AlisonOne holiday tradition I had growing up was that we weren’t allowed to open any presents until after church on Christmas Day! As a kid, it was torture having all those presents under the tree and not being able to open them immediately! In the end, it taught us patience, but it wasn’t always easy!

My holiday wish this year is for no one to be hungry during the holidays. The Phillies collected canned goods at the Holiday Sale last weekend, so thanks to everyone who brought food! Every little bit helps!

Christy G.Besides the playoffs – Christmas is my favorite time of the year. Christmas Eve I love to sit in the family room with the fireplace on as we watch Christmas movies or home videos with my family. We stay up pretty late before having our hot tea with honey and go to bed. To this day on Christmas morning my father still takes the video camera out and makes us wait on the stairs before coming down to the tree to open presents. I’m very excited but very sad at the same time… Now that I am engaged I know that this holiday tradition will be over soon. I know I will see my family on this Holiday every year but it will be hard to transition to my new lifestyle. In a few years I am sure I will start my own tradition and have my family over my house for the holidays. So I do look forward to that and keep that in the back of my mind…that a new an exciting journey of my life is about to begin. I wish everyone a very safe and happy holiday season. ?

IrenaEvery year, I go over to my parent’s house on Christmas Eve. When I was a child, we would open our gifts Christmas morning like every other family. However, that tradition has changed because I have 4 nieces and 3 nephews that celebrate Christmas at their homes on Christmas morning. So, now we celebrate on Christmas Eve.

Our entire family gathers at my parents’ home and we have dinner, then we hang out until midnight, which my younger nieces and nephews love because they get to stay up so late! We all gather around the tree and open our gifts. The kids start first because they have so many gifts to open! So, all of the gifts are technically opened on Christmas day but just a little earlier in the morning.

After a good night’s sleep, my parents and I drive to Brooklyn to visit my grandmother, aunts, uncles and cousins. This year the trip will be a bit different because my grandfather passed away in July and it will be our first Christmas without him. So, my wish this year is that we not only enjoy celebrating the holiday, but also my grandfather’s life.

LindsayBeing the youngest of three children, I was usually the one who would be carrying out each of our Christmas traditions. As a self-proclaimed Christmas Brat, I was the one to place the angel on the tree and the one to lay Baby Jesus in his manger on Christmas morning. However, my favorite tradition is one in which my entire family participates. Each year, my dad will sit us down on Christmas Eve to read ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas. The book itself is a giant coloring book almost 30 years old with its pages colored by my family throughout the years. Some are done more skillfully than others (my personal favorite is a page where Santa’s suit is a very masculine pink as opposed to the typical red) but all pages are cherished year after year.

Christy O.I LOVE Christmas! Every year on Christmas Eve my family and I go to the candle light service at church. Then, we come home and eat lots of Christmas cookies and of course watch A Christmas Story on TV (you know, the one where everyone says, “You’ll shoot your eye out!”). After the movie and way too many cookies, we usually go to bed and then get up early for presents and a BIG breakfast.

My one wish for Christmas this year is that I hope everyone has the opportunity to spend lots of time with their families and friends. Christmas is a perfect time to appreciate everyone who touches your life. Happy Holidays!

GinaChristmas is definitely the best holiday. At my house, my mom cooks dinner and all of my sisters come over. We normally have lobster and filet mignon for our main course. I have three sisters, Kelly, Angela, and Monica and we are all pretty evenly staggered in age.

Growing up Christmas time was when my mom thought it was cute to dress us all the same. So the past few years, now that everyone is older, we decided that it would be funny if we still all wore the same thing. Last year we wore matching ugly Christmas sweaters and pink slippers. This year my mom got even more into than last. She ordered us these mistle toe headbands and red and white striped leggings.

My two older sisters are nurses, and this year they have to work on Christmas Eve, which is normally when we have our dinner….I know, such a bummer. But instead of having dinner Christmas eve, this year we are having it Dec. 20th! I don’t mind it at all though, this is my favorite season!! I love when my entire family is together; it really is like one big party at the Papili house.

On Christmas day my dad takes all the girls to church at St. Elizabeth’s where I went to grade school. After church we go and visit the moms and dads of my father’s friends that he grew up with. When we finish that we stop by my uncle Louis and aunt Dolly’s for some coffee, and then we are off to Mom-mom and Pops where my dad cooks everyone breakfast! I hope everyone enjoys there holiday as much as I will. Have a safe and wonderful Christmas!

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